2XL Networks

Running a web development and hosting company is interesting, as is doing freelance web site development. I've been doing both for a long time, and I like to think I know what I'm doing.

But do the clients think I know what I'm doing? I hope so... I hope that the quality of the work we do is apparent. Sure, there is still the idea some have that the web is easy, and you can set up a web site in 10 minutes. Well, you can! But like anything of quality, it takes time, and it takes knowledge to do it right. Amazon didn't just buy some desktop application and click through a few wizards to build what they have today.

I've been involved in the development of at least 100 web sites since 1994, I believe that gives me some insight into things. That is part of the value you get when you work with 2XL Networks. That knowledge doesn't come free. I've spent countless hours researching and testing, and building things, and knowing as much as possible about what I do... that's what you are paying for. I know when to use (and not use) Flash and when to use images and when to use text to best maximize the results of your site in search engines and in the maintenance issues that don't end when the site launches. That's part of what you get. And, yes, we need to charge you for that, or the company makes no money, and disappears.

The thinking for this all came about when a customer said they were a bit surprised by the invoice for our work. Yes, you can hire people that work cheaper - that's always the case - but we think competing solely on price is a losing game. We feel that as professionals in this industry, we provide a great value to our customers, and out rates reflect that.

We do work with a lot of small business, many that are just starting out, and are a bit tight on cash. We aren't out to make a quick buck, we are building a company, so with that in mind, we're flexible and understanding of the issues. (We're a small business, we know what it's like.) So when a customer asked if they could take four months to pay off their invoice, I told them to take six. We're investing in them as much as they are investing as us. That's how we think business relationships should work.